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Galbatorix
Galbatorix was the king of Alagaësia. A one-time Dragon Rider, he eventually turned against the order and brought about their downfall, believing they had caused the death of his dragon. He then established the Empire. History At the age of ten, Galbatorix was tested by the Riders and, because of his great skill, was accepted as one of their own. He was both proud and foolhardy, but his talent as a Rider was unsurpassed. Madness Along with several of his companions and their dragons, he entered the Spine on a dare. When their party was ambushed by Urgals, all were slain, except for Galbatorix. Driven mad by the loss of his dragon, he wandered in the wild for weeks, becoming so frightful in appearance that even the Urgals avoided him. Eventually, he found his way back to Vroengard, the Riders' capital. Coming before the Council, he demanded another dragon. The Council realized that his mind was weakened, and consequently refused to meet his demand. This planted a seed of hatred in Galbatorix, and he began to believe it was the Riders' fault that his dragon had been slain. Having effectively convinced himself of this, he began plotting his revenge. The Fall of the Riders He persuaded a sympathetic Rider to kill one of the Elders; when the deed was done, he then turned on his ally and slew him. He fled into the wild, biding his time; eventually he convinced a young Rider named Morzan to support his cause. Morzan aided him in capturing the black dragon, Shruikan, killing Shruikan's rightful Rider. Shruikan was stolen as an egg, and therefore had no "rightful owner". Morzan was persuaded to steal it out of the hatchery (place were possible Riders are taken to touch eggs in hope of having one hatch.). Besides Morzan, twelve other corrupted Riders came to serve Galbatorix; the thirteen together were known as the Forsworn (or Wyrdfell to the Elves). With the Forsworn behind him, Galbatorix managed to defeat the unprepared Riders, defeating Vrael, head of the order. This brought an end to the peace the Riders had maintained in Alagaësia. The Empire Galbatorix and his followers defeated both the elves and the dwarves, both of whom afterwards went into hiding. Galbatorix then slew the rightful king of the Broddring KingdomTechnically, the Broddring Kingdom still existed, but by the time of the Rider War it was little more than a name upon royal decrees. Most of those under Galbatorix's rule never even knew it existed., and took the title upon himself. His domain became known among his subjects, and to all of Alagaësia, as the Empire. Afterwards It was later revealed that Galbatorix wished to reestablish the order of the Dragon Riders, bringing them under his control. In order to do this, he had need of Saphira, who was the last female dragon in existence. He sent Murtagh to The Burning Plains with orders to capture both Eragon and Saphira, but Murtagh had compassion on his younger (possibly half-) brother and allowed him to escape. Real-world connections Motives There has been a great deal of discussion among fans about whether or not Galbatorix truly is evil, or if does have good reasons for his actions. Some fans believe that his attempt to reestablish the Dragon Riders is proof of this theory. He may redeem himself in the end. Comparisons Galbatorix is comparable in characterization to both Sauron of The Lord of the Rings - as a "dark lord" and the primary antagonist of the work - and Emperor Palpatine and Anakin Skywalker of the Star Wars saga; he resembles Palpatine in his rise to power and unexpected overthrowing of the established order, and Anakin, in that he showed great skill and prowess in his youth, but eventually turned to the "dark side" after a terrible loss and used his talents for evil. Etymology Galbatorix means "big king" in Welsh. References and notes Category:Characters Category:Magic users Category:Humans Category:Dragon Riders Category:Imperials Category:Dark magic users Category:Royalty es:Galbatorix